Issue link: http://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/403756
IN A RECENT SURVEY conducted in the United States and 13 other countries by analytics software company FICO, 80 percent of respondents expressed interest in using their smartphones to interact with healthcare providers. Whether with government and private insurers, hospitals, pharmacies, mail-order drug companies, or third-party administrators and clinics, the over 2,000 respondents saw smartphones as an important adjunct to other forms of communication. "They wanted to be able to pull information about a specifi c condition or general health information," says Joshua Schnoll, Senior Director of Product Marketing for FICO. "There was also a desire for reminders and other information pushed to them directly." Personal computers, telephone calls and face-to-face visits were preferred methods among patients who were actively seek- ing out general health and wellness information, Schnoll says, whereas they wanted transmission by smartphone of reminders and similar information. The survey indicated 76 percent were interested in receiving reminders of upcoming appointments through their smartphone, 69 percent wanted prompts to take medications (whether daily or multiple times a day), and 59 percent wanted reminders to schedule follow-up appointments. This survey confi rms a rising trend among patients of using advice channels outside of a customary model of care. About two-thirds of smartphone users who are seeking specifi c guid- ance for a diagnosed condition want to receive it digitally in lieu of visiting a provider, and slightly more than half are open to conversations initiated by providers. Privacy Matters An interest in communicating with providers via smartphone may not translate into users actually taking advantage of such an option. However, the survey shows that 56 percent of people worldwide trust healthcare organizations with their personal data. Schnoll also notes that younger users have a higher level of trust than older users. The consumer comfort level that may have been a barrier in the past is now less of an issue. Complying with HIPAA is another potential obstacle to integrating a consistent, smartphone-based communication system into patient care. An open SMS message with specifi c, identifying patient data such as prescription reminders is not compliant with current law, but the same information transmitted via an encrypted mobile app could be well within the parameters of HIPAA. "There are other heavily regulated industries, such as banking, where they have made signifi cant moves into communicating with consumers regularly with smartphones," says Schnoll. "There's an opportunity here to deliver a quality consumer experience based on better patient experience and better outcomes, particularly thinking in terms of making sure that patients are taking their medications on time or managing chronic diseases properly. " ■ AN INTERNATIONAL SURVEY GIVES CLUES ABOUT WHAT PATIENTS WANT OUT OF SMARTPHONE-BASED COMMUNICATIONS WITH PROVIDERS. By Melissa Moore Smartphone Savvy Highlights Shift in Healthcare Communication 3 8 | Cleveland/Akron/Canton MD NEWS ■ M D N E W S . CO M ■ N OV E M B E R / D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 4